Last Updated on April 5, 2024
Driving to the Kennedy Space Center from Orlando is a great road trip for every member of the family, regardless of age…
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
By Jim Ferri
If you’re ever in Orlando you’re within striking distance of one of the unique destinations anywhere in the USA: the Kennedy Space Center.
It’s a great day trip that’s only 45 minutes from Orlando. Also, if you don’t have a rental car that’s not a problem since tour buses make the trip every day. Either way, it’s a great road trip for the entire family.
The Kennedy Space Center: 1,000,000+ Visitors Each Year
Every year more than one million travelers from around the world visit the Kennedy Space Center, many from Orlando. Undoubtedly, that makes it one of Central Florida’s most popular attractions.
Visit it – it will wow every member of your family regardless of age.
The star attraction of the Center is the Space Shuttle Atlantis. That’s the craft that made NASA’s historic final launch completing the 30-year shuttle program.
There are only three shuttles that flew in space on display around the USA. The Atlantis is the only display with its cargo door open, and robotic arm extended, just as astronauts saw it in space.
Space Center’s Incredible Multimedia
The Kennedy Space Center also features state-of-the-art multimedia presentations.
There are also more than 60 interactive exhibits and high-tech simulators. One of them is the Shuttle Launch Experience. That’s an immersion experience in which visitors are strapped into a “crew cabin”. They then move into a vertical position for a simulated shuttle launch. It comes complete with all the sights, sounds, and feelings that go with a launch to a speed of 17,500 mph. They then experience an “orbit” of the earth aboard a shuttle.
In the Apollo/Saturn V area of the Kennedy Space Center, I was in awe at the size of the 363-foot long Saturn V rocket. It’s the rocket that launched the astronauts to the moon. It’s also the only place in the world where you can touch a moon rock. You’ll also be left in awe by both.
If you’re in Orlando at one of the parks and want to extend the “wow” fact, take a road trip to the Kennedy Space Center. Everyone in the family will find it overwhelming. Guaranteed.
You may also enjoy: National Air and Space Museum Dulles / A Florida Road Trip: The Gulf Coast / Florida’s Real Alligator Alley
A Great Tour of the Kennedy Space Center
The tour of the Center includes close-up views of historic and working spaceflight areas. This includes the massive Vehicle Assembly Building, where the solid rocket boosters, external fuel tank, and the orbiter join to create the space shuttle vehicle. It’s one of the largest buildings in the world.
If you have the moolah and would really like to impress your group, you can also tour the Center with a veteran NASA astronaut.
If You Go:
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com
Tel: (866) 737-5235
“Atlantic”???
Rob, Thank you for telling me about that! I don’t know how many people have read that and haven’t caught the error. It’s corrected now.
We were there on April 1 and it was open.
Thank you for that info Lou.